1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a wheelchair, and more particularly, to a wheelchair that is convertible into a gurney for transferring an immobile patient from a bed to a gurney or vice versa.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It appears to be widely accepted that a major, if not the major, work-related complaint among nurses and hospital nursing staff is back injury caused by lifting patients and getting them in and out of a bed and to and from a gurney or a stretcher, as it is commonly referred to. This is also true with transferring a patient from a wheelchair into a bed. Although the prior art includes wheelchairs that are convertible into gurneys, several problems exist when those patients must be moved from the bed to the gurney and vice versa. These problems include back injuries caused by lifting the patients and getting up in and out of the bed from the gurney and vice versa.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a wheelchair that is convertible into a gurney so that a patient may easily be transferred from a bed to the gurney and vice versa.